SKOWHEGAN -- The music was perfect.

The Skowhegan Area High School concert band, a 57-player ensemble, performed songs live Sunday during graduation ceremonies for the class of 2009.

The band, under the guidance of Director John Reeves, played "God of Our Fathers," a medley from "Mamma Mia" and their own rendition of "The Final Countdown" a 1986 song by rock band Europe.

Musicians also played the school song and a rare, complete version of "Pomp and Circumstance" as the 180 graduates marched into the gymnasium to receive their diplomas. There also was a live performance of "As Time Goes By," by Katie Pullyard on tenor saxophone and Silas Price on piano.

"Oh, it's the final countdown, we're leaving together," the song says, and so it was Sunday for graduates from Canaan, Cornville, Mercer, Norridgewock, Skowhegan and Smithfield.

Following a flag salute led by graduate and class president Matthew Libby and some reflections by Natalie Dumont, senior class steward, class salutatorian Minna Mathiasson gave her welcoming remarks.

Mathiasson told the assembly of family, friends and teachers she would attempt to "expand upon the most important parts of the last four years" of her life.

They were many, she said, promising not to bore them with minutia.

From lunch trays and jumping under traffic signs, to iced coffee to keep awake, road races, the benefits of knitting, cracking a raw egg with one hand and drama students wearing army pants, the days of their lives at Skowhegan High School taught her so much, some of it important, Mathiasson said.

"And that, and I quote: 'Anyone who says they want to go to your graduation is lying,'" she said, eliciting a round of laughter.

On a more serious note, Mathiasson closed by thanking her family, friends, teachers, classmates, coaches and the high school as a whole for giving her "the opportunities, resources and that little bit of humor we all need to survive to create these unforgettable memories."

In her farewell to the class of 2009, class valedictorian Merelise Ametti also thanked supporters over the years, but most of all, she said, she wanted to congratulate her classmates for a job well done.

She asked her classmates to dream and to believe in themselves to ensure life's successes

"Visualize your futures, however unclear and distant they may be at this point and then, most important believe; believe that your aspirations will be realized," Ametti said.

"While we all will cross the stage separately to receive our diplomas, together we will be transitioning into adulthood, together we will surmount the challenges that life presents us and together, in only a few short minutes, we, the class of 2009, will culminate our high school experiences."

It was the final countdown, for now.

Doug Harlow -- 474-9534, ext. 342

dharlow@centralmaine.com